Optical fiber connectors are widely used in optical transmission and optical networking. Optical fibers may be inserted into an optical fiber connector and be easily connected to communication devices thereby. Among various types of optical fiber connectors, the FC (Ferrule Connector) type, SC (Subscriber Connector) type, LC (Lucent Connector) type, etc. are most widely used. Owing to the miniaturization of modern communication devices, an optical fiber connector with relatively short length is desirable.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional optical fiber connector 1 includes a housing unit 11, a fiber ferrule unit 12 that has a substantial portion disposed in the housing unit 11, a first connecting unit 13 connected to the housing unit 11, a second connecting unit 16 connected to the first connecting unit 13, a sleeve unit 15 sleeved on the housing unit 11 and the second connecting unit 16, and a tubular boot unit 14 connected to the second connecting unit 16.
The housing unit 11 includes a housing body 110 that defines an internal space 111, and an engaging member 112 disposed on the housing body 110. The fiber ferrule unit 12 includes a fiber ferrule 121 adapted for receiving an optical fiber (not shown), and a resilient member 122 sleeved on the fiber ferrule 121. The first connecting unit 13 has an abutting portion 131 that abuts against the resilient member 122 and that extends into the internal space 111, an engagement portion 132 that is connected to the abutting portion 131 and that engages the engaging member 112, and a connecting portion 133 that is connected to the engagement portion 132 opposite to the abutting portion 131. The second connecting unit 16 includes opposite first and second ends. The first end is sleeved by and received in the sleeve unit 15 and engages the connecting portion 133. The second end is received in the tubular boot unit 14. The sleeve unit 15 abuts against the tubular boot unit 14. With the aforesaid configuration, an overall length of the conventional optical fiber connector 1 is relatively long, which does not meet the miniaturization requirement in the industry.